Faster ways to remove flower from CO2 extractor?

Hey all,

It takes an excessive amount of time and effort to vacuum or pound flower out of our extractor vessels after terpene runs. The material is very compact. We tried using mesh socks that could slide right out, but saw significant reductions in terpene yields.

I’d love to have an auger of some kind to break it up, but everyting I’ve seen is made of steel and would scratch the extractor vessels.

Any creative approaches to this little problem? Thanks!

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Use that awesome search icon in the upper right corner of the page. We delved into this is detail with many many options.

No sporks shall be given today.

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Shoot, really? I must have used bad search terms. Will try again.

Can you point me in the right direction? I’m seeing nothing. Thanks so much.

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not sure what size your material column is but theres probably a sock out there that will fit it.

yeah.

you probably failed to search for “pot bazooka:thinking:

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Socks are the easiest method, but as you pointed out you suffered reduced yields. In my experience, running terps with socks adds 50-100% more runtime to achieve the same yield. Have you tried extending the runtime with the socks in? Additionally, in my experience using socks takes about 10% off the total weight you can pack into the column, are you accounting for the lower input weight when looking at how many terps you are getting out?

Depending on what machine you use, Apeks makes a nice material column plunger. Pop the top and bottom off of your column, get on top and push it out. Only works if your columns are the same diameter as theirs though.

Other than that, you just gotta roll up the sleeves and do the ole poke ‘n’ suck with a stick and a shop vac.

EDIT: Link to apeks website with plunger
http://apeksonlinestore.com/product/3in-4in-plunger-assembly/

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I have four columns - 6x48 inches each.

The socks I tried before were not built to fit the size of the column. They were much smaller in diameter and length and we stuffed two inside. Doing it this way reduced our terpene yields quite a bit, but maybe if it’s built for the correct dimensions I can still pack the column the way I do without socks.

Thanks for the input!

I did not even think of that, thanks!

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I am actually running an Apeks 4x20L Duplex. The plunger you linked to is for plunging the walls of the separator columns to remove oil from the walls.

Yes, we accounted for the lower input weight. Looking like poke ‘n’ suck is the way to go. I’d like to find a 2 inch diameter 48 inch long plastic auger that hooks up to a power drill, but no one makes that.

Thanks for the input!

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@Soxhlet: can you make an ordinary plastic rod into an auger with your shop toys?

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That’s funny, I didn’t even realize that was for the separators lol. My buddies out in Colorado don’t have an Apeks but use that to push out the material from their column.

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Hi,
more than likely, what type of plastic do you think uhmw?

UHMW seems like it would take more abuse than teflon.

chances are a full length metal shaft would increase longevity, not sure how much it would complicate fabrication.

Not really a problem I’m dealing with these days. although who knows what the next gig will bring

I think this is what you’re looking for. Chicken plucker bolts around a pvc tube.

I’ll make and sell em for $250 (just for my trouble)

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We fill the bottom of each sock with an inch or two of glass marbles to help seat the sock in the column. It also aids in more even diffusion of supercritical fluid through your material and prevents channeling. Not sure how the sock would drastically reduce terpene yields but it sounds like an inefficiency in column packing to me. Did you pack your material in the sock outside the column? if the sock was too narrow for your column thats exactly why you had low terp yields. The fluid will take the path of least resistance which in this case is completely around the sock.

perhaps you missed this part?

“if the sock was too narrow for your column thats exactly why you had low terp yields. The fluid will take the path of least resistance which in this case is completely around the sock.”

???

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